For lifelong Lionel Messi fan Sabyasachi Ghosh (25), the trip to Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday morning was to be a pilgrimage, a chance to pay homage to the global football deity. By noon, he would stand stunned, his eyes searching for the 5’7” Argentine whose poster adorned his room’s wall. “Waste of time, waste of money,” was how he summed up the day.

Ghosh’s anger was shared by the thousands who had turned up to be part of the opening leg of Messi’s GOAT Tour. “I spent Rs 4,000 but couldn’t even get a glimpse of him. Only if he had been allowed to walk around the stadium, we all could have at least seen him. I can’t afford to go abroad to watch him. The VIPs got a chance to be with him and click pictures,” he said.

Many paid much more, ranging from the highest ticket of Rs 12,000 to a

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